injury
by the primrose path
Summary: Thanks to Zack (of course), Terra's done something stupid (as always). But it was totally his choice. Man, is Aqua going to give it to him today. [ oneshot. / AU. ]


**A/N:**

**Disclaimer – I am not part of the copyright that concerns the Kingdom Hearts video game series or any of its affiliates. I am aware, therefore, that my fanfiction exists only out of the grace and mercy of the real copyright holders. I do not intend to gain any monetary profit from this oneshot.**

**I'm taking part in a 100-oneshot challenge on a different website, and I've pretty much decided to upload at least most of that stuff up here.**

* * *

Terra caught the football. He tossed it back.

Zack lunged to grab it and flipped it in the air a few times before throwing it again.

Terra had to jog backwards to catch it this time.

Another toss, and Zack caught it with an oomph. The impact just about knocked the breath out of his lungs. Unlike Terra, who had the combination of both considerable height and stockiness, Zack had drawn the short end of the stick in terms of the latter. To put it simply, he was a skinny kid.

"God, Terra," he said and tossed it over. "A little bit higher, and I would've lost a tooth."

"I'll make sure to aim lower then," Terra responded as he caught the ball. He then grinned wickedly.

It took a moment for Zack to get it – both the meaning behind his words and the football. "Why am I friends with you again?" he asked after a pause, absently flipping the football from hand to hand.

"Because I'm just too cool," Terra replied. "That, and I'm rich. So I have a big house and a big yard." Coincidentally, they were in that same yard at the moment. He didn't add that they also first met because both of them were admiring the same girl. So there.

"Oh yeah," Zack muttered.

He studied the ball for a second before turning his gaze to the tree nearby. It was an old tree that had come with the property when Terra's family first bought it, and the very top looked to be grazing the sky when you were underneath. It was almost as tall as the three-floor house it belonged to. The leaves were currently turning the golden-red of autumn.

"Truth or dare, Terra," he said.

Terra blinked. "What?"

"Truth," Zack repeated slowly, "or dare."

Terra was getting a bad feeling about this, and he narrowed his eyes. But his typical pride quickly prevailed. "Dare."

Zack nodded as if he had expected no less. "I dare you," he said, "to climb to the top of that tree."

"... What?"

"Are you deaf today or something? I dare you to climb up to the top of the tree."

"No, I..." Terra shook his head. "You seriously want me to climb all the way up there?"

"Yes."

Terra looked at the tree, the challenge daunting him. He could climb; that wasn't the issue. It was just that the tree was so tall, and those branches near the top looked so flimsy. He wasn't exactly a lightweight guy, after all. What if one of them broke? Or, even better, what if he got to the top and then couldn't find a way back down? God, would that be embarrassing. His parents would have to call the fire department or something, and then everyone at school would be laughing about it for days while he got stuck in his house, grounded for being stupid.

Zack's impatient voice interrupted his thoughts. "Well?"

Terra studied the tree for a moment more before looking at his friend beseechingly.

He only arched a brow. It was like Zack was saying silently, _you picked dare. Now deal with it._

Terra pursed his lips before looking again at the tree. His expression turned into a frown of worry, but the decision was made.

Pride before a fall.

"Fine," Terra responded curtly.

**. . .**

Aqua was in her living room, curled up on a couch and reading a book.

Her phone cheerfully rattled against the coffee table, letting off the blare that meant to let her know there was a text. She reached over and took it up.

Half a second later, her narrowed eyes abruptly widened, and she stuffed a bookmark into her book as she speed-dialed a number.

"Ven." She said this into the phone as soon as the other on the line answered. She shoved her feet into a pair of boots and, tucking the phone into a shoulder, snatched a jacket off the coat rack and threw it on. "Meet me at the park on Garden."

Aqua stuffed her arm into a sleeve and flung open the door.

**. . .**

_terra fell out a tree_, the text said. _he broke a leg &amp; got taken to er 10 min ago._

A text she had received while walking to the park said, _Terra's been in an accident. He's broken his right leg and he wanted you to know he's okay. We went to the ER at Radiance Hospital if you want to come._ It was from his mom.

_Of course_, Aqua had replied.

_Okay. I'll let them know you'll be looking for us._

Ven read these a few more times before he looked back up at Aqua with a horrified expression on his face. "Seriously?"

"Apparently." Aqua took back her phone and checked the time. It was fifteen minutes after she'd received the first text. She and Ven were now standing by the park swings, two figures meeting in an empty park. "And Zack sent the news first. Somehow. He hasn't responded to any of my texts or calls yet."

Ven frowned in frustrated worry, tugging his jacket closer. "How did Zack know about it before us?"

"That's exactly what I'm wondering," Aqua replied.

The younger kid continued. "And Mrs. Holloway really wouldn't mind us going to the hospital and finding them?"

"I don't think so." Aqua glanced at her phone again. "She said we could come."

"Then why aren't we going already?" Ven asked, voice tight with irritation.

She didn't take it personally; she knew he was just getting stressed out from knowing that Terra was in the hospital for a broken leg. From falling out of a tree, if what Zack said was right. What in the world had gotten into his head to make him even go up into a tree in the first place?

Aqua sighed silently. Guys.

"Alright, alright," she said. "Let's start heading over."

They began to walk away from the swing set and back towards the street. Radiance Hospital was also on Garden, something Aqua had anticipated and why she had her and Ven meet at the park. It was also a ten to fifteen minute walk, so most of the way there was dominated by silent worrying about Terra's injury. The tension made the possibility of casual talk a very awkward thing to consider.

The hospital grounds were in view when Ven finally said, "I hope Terra's okay."

"He should be," Aqua responded after a moment. "If he actually hurt something more serious, his mom would've let us know by now."

"But what if they don't know?" Ven pointed out, the frustration in his voice again. "It's only been like half an hour. They could still be waiting in the ER."

Aqua considered this. "If he's in real danger," she eventually said, "he'll already be getting treated. Hospitals take injuries like that seriously. So don't worry, Ven, the doctors know what to do – it's their job. Besides, his mom hasn't said anything about that yet."

Ven looked down at his shoes while they walked. After a moment, he said, "I just hope that Terra's bone didn't snap off all the way or something. That would be really bad."

"Hopefully." Aqua pursed her lips in renewed concern. She hadn't thought of that, and the fact that Mrs. Holloway hadn't let them know one way or another didn't reassure her this time; she wouldn't put it past the woman to not say anything about it until they got there. "It depends on how high he fell from and how he landed, I think."

Her friend nodded and didn't say anything more until they entered the ER lobby.

**. . .**

The two found themselves watching a room through a huge plexiglass window. Terra was inside, getting his leg x-rayed. His father, wearing what basically amounted to a big lead apron, was also inside. Mrs. Holloway, his mother, was outside the room with Aqua and Ven, since the hospital only allowed one other person with Terra.

"So they think it's a... crus fracture?" Aqua asked. She was unfamiliar with the term.

Mrs. Holloway nodded. "In the lower leg," she said. "But that's obvious. The theory is also that it's a complete break through the tibia. There isn't anything jutting out from his leg either."

"Oh." That part she could get. "Good thing it wasn't the femur."

"Yes, definitely."

Aqua looked back into the x-ray room with a frown of concern.

"This won't stop him from playing football, will it?" Ven asked Mrs. Holloway.

She hesitated before shaking her head. "I haven't asked yet, but Terra's young, and this is his first break like that. I think once it heals, his ability to play should be fine."

The door nearby opened, and Terra was wheeled out. His father was holding the wheelchair handles.

"Hey guys," he said.

"Terra," Aqua began. There was a scowl on her face.

He and Ven looked at each other with faintly knowing expressions. Off to the side, Mrs. Holloway hid a smile. They knew what was coming.

"I can't believe that you fell out of a freaking tree," she said, aggravated, "much less climbed the one _in your yard_." She threw her hands up in exasperation. "What in the world, Terra? Now you've gotten your leg broken, and we'll all have to suffer through two months of it healing, you stuck with crutches, a cast, and sitting on the bench instead of playing." She shook her head. "I hope climbing up that tree was worth it."

"Well for the record," Terra began. He paused to make sure Aqua wasn't planning to continue her tirade before going on. "Zack dared me to do it."

Her first thought was one of surprise. The next was of even deeper frustration. "And if someone tells you to go jump off a bridge, would you do it?"

"No, but come on, Aqua," he said. "It's Zack. No way was he going to just let me wimp out on a dare."

She sighed and rubbed her forehead, but it was the truth.

"Look on the bright side, Aqua," Ven piped up. "At least he didn't break something worse, like his spine. And tomorrow, you can nag Zack all you like about it."

Terra chuckled at the prospect.

Aqua couldn't help but smile. "Of course. He'll definitely be getting it."


End file.
